Indicator for street-railway cars



May 29, 1928. '1 1,671,190

H. R. GERRARD INDICATOR FOR STREET RAILWAY CARS Filed Dec. 17, 1927 Ila/wry Ro'rnwsu. fizkli'mo attorney.

Inventor Patented May 29, 1928.

. UNITED STA TES HENRY BOTHWELL 'GERRARD, 0F TORONTO, ON TARIO, CANADA.

INDICATOR FOR STREET-RAILWAY CARS.

Application filed December The invention relates to improvements in indicators for street railway cars and the like as described in the present specification and shown in the accompanying drawings which form part of the same.

The invention has for its object the pro vision of an attachment for a street railway car or other passenger-carrying vehicle, which will indicate the names of intersecting streets, or stopping places of the vehicle over a given route. This is achieved by the provision of a casing or the like in which is exposed to view a strip of names, or other indicia of the intersecting streets or stops. A pointer progressively travels over the strip indicating the streets as they are reached; which pointer is actuated by mechanism connected to a rotating element of the-conveyance, such as the live aX'le illustrated in the drawings hereinafter described in detail.

A salient feature of the invention is that the pointer automatically reverses at the end of the route in order to indicate on the return run.

A further distinctive feature resides in the provision for setting the pointer atany place on the name strip or for resetting 1t 1n the event that a deviation is made when on any trip which would cause the pointer to indicate incorrectly.

The accompanying drawings indicate one practical mode of carrying the invention into effect, in which Figure l is an elevation of the invention shown geared to a live axle of a street railway car or other vehicle.

Figure 2 is a sectional view of reduction gears taken on the line 22 of Figure 1.

Figure 2-3 is a transverse section taken on the line of Figure 1 and illustrates the pointer and its operating mechanism.

Referring to the drawings, it is proposed that some sort of casing shall be employed to hold the name-strip or other indicia-bearing element 11 and the pointer 12 together with its associated operating mechanism. The casing may be of suitable design and will be placed in the most conspicuous location in the vehicle where it can be observed by the passengers.

The operating mechanism for the pointer herein disclosed comprises a feed screw 13 of the reversal type, i. e. one having right and left hand threads merged into each other at the ends to form an endless path for a follower 14c, Fig. 3.

17-, 1927. Serial No. 240,827.-

he follower is of the kind usually employed with this type of feed screw, hence a detailed description is deemed tobe unnecessary. It is housed in a sleeve 15 slidablymounted on the feed screw, said sleeve being constructed integrally with or socured to the pointer 12 so as to travel axially of the screw and parallel to the name-strip. VJithya view to holding the sleeve against rotation it is supplied with a bifurcated projection 16 that embraces a rod 17 rigidly sccured in the casing 10.

The feed screw is supported in bearings 18, 19; and carries a worm wheel 20 that meshes with a worm 21. The worm is connected to a flexible shaft 22 which leads to one of the live axles, indicated at 23, and to which it is operablyconnected by gearing 2.4. It is manifest that reduction gearing other than that shown will have to be introduced in the transmission'in order to secure the requisite ratio between the source of power and the feed screw, however suchreduction gearing is conventional t0 the art and therefore is not a partof the present invention.

Adverting to the means for setting or resetting the pointer at any particular loca tion on the name-strip, this mechanism consists of supplying the follower l t with an integral shank 25 terminating in a handle 26. This shank has a collar 27 in the vicinity of the follower, one face of which engages an annular shoulder 28 of the sleeve 15.- The other face thereof is engaged by a coil spring 29 that is compressed by the retaining ring 30 screw fitted to the sleeve.

It will be understood that to manually shift the pointer along the name strip it is merely necessary to grasp the handle 26 and pull it, thus disengaging the follower. The handle is held raised and the sleeve moved to the new setting of the pointer whereupon it is released, allowing the follower to be re-engaged.

In the operation of the invention, when the vehicle is set in motion. the flexible shaft transmits power to the feed-screw by means of the reduction gearing. The pointer traverses the name-strip progressively indicating the names of stops or streets in its path which correspond to those intersected by the vehicle when passing over its route.

Having now described the preferred form of the embodiment of the invention capable of carrying the same into practical operallll) lll) to as may fail fl comewithin tbe spirit end i mm'tlhvu. I ts scope oi the mvention and chums hereinafter following.

What I claim is 1. In an indicatingdevic e of the "class de scribedya DBJTIDQ strip, a pointer associz tted tlii'ejt i a feed serewope1'eb1y 's1ipporting the pointer; sziid iee'ctiscre-W being of the '1eiei'sa1 or "HefsiaH type; "follower carried by [the pointer 51nd engaged with the git-66w ofi'tiie' s-, 1-ew't1u ea;d, beatings c'onsti tinting a "xiieunting for the ie'ed sciew redner1611 "gem-11kg cfonnected to' sefi dfeea scl'ewfa fietllilc slia'ft (intending 'gl'fioi'n the eari g, ii l fd inezins opeiably"associating the flexible "sihkiftwith; 'otatzible phi-t of conveyance sc1;b c1 mmme em-115,11 pointer "zissocisited t hel "attached to tlie pointer, a follower projectwi th themed 0 p ieven in'gjbarallel to the sci'eirvfa, jfiifiliCHfigd projection carried by the sleeve and engaged viiation of the y associating conveyance so as to take off power there the 'fol'l ofwerl and terminating .Linlalhafijdlega 6011mcmrri'edby the shank gldjacentgiiil the follower, a sho nl der formed onfithesleey'e'to iminisiliy engage one -tfacejof the collelgja c011 sl'mn'gengagmgtheother coligpjgt ce,

and retaining 'ing exerting"compressive fe'ice on tbespring, t a Signednt 'loi'ont'o, Gmmdnftl'lis 12t1ft1'ay of Deee'fnbei', 1927.

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